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Canadian Citizenship Test: Practice Questions

Canadian citizenship test practice: 218 questions covering every chapter of Discover Canada, the official study guide, with short answers and a note on each. Our own questions, not IRCC's. Office holders checked on September 28, 2026.

Citizenship218 cards

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Canadian citizenship test: the format, every deck and its source

  • Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship

    What does equality of women and men mean in Canada?

    Women and men have equal status under the law

  • Canada's History

    Who were the first Europeans to reach Canada?

    The Vikings

  • Federal Elections

    What do you do at the polling station on election day?

    Mark an X beside your chosen candidate behind the voting screen, fold the ballot and put it in the ballot box

  • Canadian Symbols

    When is Canada Day?

    July 1

  • Canada's Regions

    What is the capital of Quebec?

    Québec City

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Every section is open, so any card can come up in review.

  1. Section 1: Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship

    18 cards

  2. Section 2: Who We Are

    15 cards

  3. Section 3: Canada's History

    53 cards

  4. Section 4: Modern Canada

    19 cards

  5. Section 5: How Canadians Govern Themselves

    23 cards

  6. Section 6: Federal Elections

    18 cards

  7. Section 7: The Justice System

    9 cards

  8. Section 8: Canadian Symbols

    24 cards

  9. Section 9: Canada's Economy

    8 cards

  10. Section 10: Canada's Regions

    31 cards
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All 218 cards

In the order you learn them, one section at a time.

1Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship18 cards

In the Oath of Citizenship, to whom do new citizens swear allegiance?
King Charles III, King of Canada, his heirs and successors
Besides loyalty to the King, what two things does a new citizen promise in the Oath of Citizenship?
To obey the laws of Canada, including the Constitution To fulfil the duties of a Canadian citizen
Name two sources of Canadian law.
Laws passed by Parliament Laws passed by the provincial legislatures English common law The civil code of France The unwritten constitution inherited from Great Britain
Which two documents does Discover Canada name as the roots and guarantee of Canadians' rights and freedoms?
Magna Carta The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
In what year was the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms added to the Constitution?
1982
According to the opening of the Charter, what two principles is Canada founded on?
The supremacy of God The rule of law
Name four fundamental freedoms that Canadians have.
Freedom of conscience and religion Freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of speech and of the press Freedom of peaceful assembly Freedom of association
What is habeas corpus?
The right to challenge being held by the state without a lawful reason
What are mobility rights?
The right to live and work anywhere in Canada, to enter and leave the country freely, and to apply for a passport
What do official language rights guarantee?
English and French have equal status in Parliament and throughout the federal government
What does the Charter say about the rights of Aboriginal peoples?
The rights in the Charter do not take away any treaty or other rights of Aboriginal peoples
What does multiculturalism mean as a Charter principle?
It is a basic part of Canadian heritage and identity: Canadians value and share one another's cultures
What does equality of women and men mean in Canada?
Women and men have equal status under the law
Name three responsibilities of Canadian citizens.
Obeying the law Taking responsibility for yourself and your family Serving on a jury Voting in elections Helping others in the community Protecting and enjoying our heritage and environment
Name one way to take responsibility for yourself and your family.
Getting a job Caring for your family Working hard in keeping with your abilities
What must you do if you are called to serve on a jury?
Serve; it is a legal duty
Is military service compulsory in Canada?
No
Name one way to serve Canada other than joining the regular Canadian Forces.
The reserves (navy, militia or air) The Canadian Coast Guard The police Firefighting or other emergency services The cadets (for young people)

2Who We Are15 cards

Which three peoples does Discover Canada name as Canada's founding peoples?
Aboriginal peoples The French The British
What are the three distinct groups of Aboriginal peoples in Canada?
First Nations Inuit Métis
Who are the Métis?
A distinct people of mixed Aboriginal and European ancestry
What does the word Inuit mean?
"The people" in Inuktitut
Which document of 1763 guaranteed the territorial rights of Aboriginal peoples?
The Royal Proclamation of 1763
What was the purpose of residential schools?
To assimilate Aboriginal children into mainstream Canadian culture
In what year did the Government of Canada formally apologize to former students of residential schools?
2008
What are the two official languages of Canada?
English French
What is the only officially bilingual province?
New Brunswick
Who are the Acadians?
Descendants of French colonists who began settling the Maritime provinces in 1604
What was the Great Upheaval?
The deportation of more than two-thirds of the Acadians by the British between 1755 and 1763
What did the House of Commons recognize about the Québécois in 2006?
That they form a nation within a united Canada
Since the 1970s, where have most immigrants to Canada come from?
Asian countries
What is the largest religious affiliation in Canada?
Catholic
What legal rights do gay and lesbian Canadians have?
Full protection and equal treatment under the law, including access to civil marriage

3Canada's History53 cards

Who lived in Canada before the Europeans arrived?
Aboriginal peoples
Which First Nations formed a confederacy of five, later six, nations?
The Iroquois
Who were the first Europeans to reach Canada?
The Vikings
Who was the first explorer to map Canada's east coast, in 1497?
John Cabot
Who made three voyages across the Atlantic between 1534 and 1542 and claimed land for France?
Jacques Cartier
Where does the name Canada come from?
Kanata, an Iroquoian word meaning "village"
Who founded the first European settlement north of Florida, in 1604?
Pierre de Monts and Samuel de Champlain
What city did Samuel de Champlain found in 1608?
Québec City
What was the main economic activity of New France?
The fur trade, especially beaver pelts
Which company received exclusive trading rights over the Hudson Bay watershed in 1670?
The Hudson's Bay Company
Which battle in 1759 ended France's empire in America?
The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, at Québec City
What did the Quebec Act of 1774 do?
Allowed religious freedom for Catholics and let them hold public office Restored French civil law while keeping British criminal law
Who were the Loyalists?
People who stayed loyal to the Crown and left the United States during and after the American Revolution
Where and when was the first representative assembly in Canada elected?
Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 1758
What did the Constitutional Act of 1791 do?
Divided the Province of Quebec into Upper Canada and Lower Canada Gave both elected legislative assemblies Made the name Canada official
Which province was the first in the British Empire to move toward abolishing slavery, and when?
Upper Canada, in 1793
What was the Underground Railroad?
A Christian anti-slavery network that helped slaves escape from the United States to Canada
In which war did Canadian volunteers, First Nations and British soldiers turn back an American invasion?
The War of 1812
Which British general captured Detroit and was killed at Queenston Heights in the War of 1812?
Major-General Sir Isaac Brock
Who was Laura Secord?
A pioneer woman who walked about 30 km to warn British troops of an American attack in 1813
Who recommended uniting Upper and Lower Canada and giving them responsible government?
Lord Durham
What is responsible government?
The Crown's ministers can govern only while most of the elected members of the assembly support them
Which colony was the first in British North America to have full responsible government?
Nova Scotia, in 1847–48
Who was Sir Louis-Hippolyte La Fontaine?
The first leader of a responsible government in the Canadas
What was Confederation?
The union of provinces into one country, the Dominion of Canada, in 1867
Who were the Fathers of Confederation?
The representatives of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and the Province of Canada who created Canada between 1864 and 1867
Which four provinces formed Canada in 1867?
Ontario Quebec Nova Scotia New Brunswick
On what date did Canada become a country?
July 1, 1867
Which law of the British Parliament created Canada in 1867?
The British North America Act
Which province and territory joined Canada in 1870?
Manitoba The Northwest Territories
When did British Columbia join Canada, and what was it promised?
1871; a railway to the West Coast
When did Prince Edward Island join Canada?
1873
Which two provinces joined Canada in 1905?
Alberta Saskatchewan
Which was the last province to join Canada, and when?
Newfoundland and Labrador, in 1949
Who was Canada's first Prime Minister?
Sir John A. Macdonald
Who led Quebec into Confederation?
Sir George-Étienne Cartier
Who led the Métis uprisings of 1869–70 and 1885?
Louis Riel
Which police force did Prime Minister Macdonald create in 1873?
The North West Mounted Police
When was the Canadian Pacific Railway finished, and who drove the last spike?
November 7, 1885; Donald Smith (Lord Strathcona)
What was the Chinese Head Tax?
A race-based entry fee charged to Chinese immigrants after the Canadian Pacific Railway was finished
Who was the first French-Canadian Prime Minister since Confederation?
Sir Wilfrid Laurier
Which First World War battle in April 1917 is remembered as a symbol of Canadian nationhood?
The Battle of Vimy Ridge
Who commanded the Canadian Corps in the final hundred days of the First World War?
General Sir Arthur Currie
When did the First World War end?
November 11, 1918
Who wrote the poem "In Flanders Fields"?
Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae
What does the red poppy worn on Remembrance Day stand for?
Remembering the veterans and the Canadians who died serving in war
Who founded the women's suffrage movement in Canada?
Dr. Emily Stowe
Which province was the first to give women the vote, and when?
Manitoba, in 1916
When did most Canadian women aged 21 or older get the right to vote in federal elections?
1918
Who was the first woman elected to Parliament?
Agnes Macphail, in 1921
On D-Day, June 6, 1944, which beach did Canadian troops capture?
Juno Beach
Which country did the Canadian Army liberate in 1944–45?
The Netherlands
What happened to Canadians of Japanese origin during the Second World War?
The federal government forcibly relocated them and sold their property without compensation

4Modern Canada19 cards

What was discovered in Alberta in 1947?
Oil
When did the federal government introduce unemployment insurance?
1940
Name the two defence alliances Canada joined during the Cold War.
NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) NORAD (North American Aerospace Defence Command)
Which war did Canada fight in from 1950 to 1953 under the United Nations?
The Korean War
Name one country where Canadians have served in United Nations peacekeeping missions.
Egypt Cyprus Haiti
What was Quebec's Quiet Revolution?
A time of rapid change in Quebec in the 1960s
In which years did Quebec vote in referendums on sovereignty?
1980 1995
Which international group of French-speaking countries did Canada help found in 1970?
La Francophonie
In what year did Aboriginal people get the right to vote in federal elections?
1960
What group of painters, founded in 1920, is known for Canadian wilderness landscapes?
The Group of Seven
Who invented basketball?
James Naismith, a Canadian, in 1891
Who scored the winning goal in the 1972 Canada-Soviet hockey Summit Series?
Paul Henderson
Who was Terry Fox?
A young British Columbian who lost a leg to cancer and began the Marathon of Hope in 1980
Who discovered insulin?
Sir Frederick Banting and Charles Best
Who invented the snowmobile?
Joseph-Armand Bombardier
Who invented the world system of standard time zones?
Sir Sandford Fleming
Which inventor developed the idea of the telephone at his summer house in Canada?
Alexander Graham Bell
Which Canadian invention is a robotic arm used in outer space?
The Canadarm
Who invented the BlackBerry?
Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie of Research In Motion (RIM)

5How Canadians Govern Themselves23 cards

What are the three key facts about Canada's system of government?
Canada is a federal state Canada is a parliamentary democracy Canada is a constitutional monarchy
What does it mean that Canada is a federal state?
Powers are divided between the federal government and the provincial governments
Name two responsibilities of the federal government.
National defence Foreign policy Citizenship Criminal law Currency Interprovincial trade and communications Navigation Aboriginal affairs
Name two responsibilities of the provincial governments.
Education Health care Natural resources Property and civil rights Highways Municipal government
Which two areas do the federal and provincial governments share?
Agriculture Immigration
What does it mean that Canada is a parliamentary democracy?
People elect representatives to Parliament and the legislatures, who make laws, approve spending and hold the government to account
What are the three parts of Parliament?
The Sovereign (King or Queen) The Senate The House of Commons
Name the three branches of government in Canada.
Executive Legislative Judicial
What does it mean that Canada is a constitutional monarchy?
Canada's head of state is a hereditary Sovereign who reigns according to the Constitution
Who is Canada's head of state?
The Sovereign: King Charles III
Who is the head of government in Canada?
The Prime Minister
Who is the Prime Minister of Canada?
Mark Carney
Who represents the Sovereign in Canada?
The Governor General
Who is the Governor General of Canada?
Louise Arbour
How is the Governor General appointed, and for how long?
By the Sovereign on the advice of the Prime Minister, usually for five years
Who represents the Sovereign in each province?
The Lieutenant Governor
Who represents the federal government in each territory?
The Commissioner
What is the head of a provincial government called?
The Premier
How are senators chosen, and until what age can they serve?
The Governor General appoints them on the Prime Minister's advice; they can serve until age 75
Who sits in the House of Commons?
Members of Parliament (MPs) elected by the people
Name the stages a bill goes through to become law.
First reading Second reading Committee stage Report stage Third reading The same stages in the Senate Royal Assent
What is the final step before a bill becomes law?
Royal Assent, granted by the Governor General on behalf of the Sovereign
What are members of provincial and territorial legislatures called?
MLAs (Members of the Legislative Assembly) MNAs (Members of the National Assembly) MPPs (Members of the Provincial Parliament) MHAs (Members of the House of Assembly)

6Federal Elections18 cards

When are federal elections held?
On the third Monday in October, in the fourth calendar year after the last general election
What is another name for a federal electoral district?
A riding A constituency
How many federal electoral districts does Canada have?
343 (since the 2025 election) 308 in Discover Canada
Who can vote in a federal election?
A Canadian citizen who is at least 18 on voting day and is on the voters' list
Which agency runs federal elections and keeps the list of voters?
Elections Canada
What is a voter information card?
A card Elections Canada mails to registered voters, saying when, where and how to vote
How can you vote if you cannot vote on election day?
At an advance poll By special ballot
What do you do at the polling station on election day?
Mark an X beside your chosen candidate behind the voting screen, fold the ballot and put it in the ballot box
Do you have to tell anyone how you voted?
No. Canada has a secret ballot
In a federal election, who wins an electoral district's seat in the House of Commons?
The candidate with the most votes in that district
After an election, which party forms the government?
Usually the party with the most seats in the House of Commons
What is a majority government?
A government whose party holds at least half of the seats in the House of Commons
What usually happens if the government loses a confidence vote?
The Prime Minister asks the Governor General to call an election
What is the Official Opposition?
The opposition party with the most seats in the House of Commons
Who chooses Cabinet ministers?
The Prime Minister
Name Canada's three levels of government.
Federal Provincial or territorial Municipal (local)
Name two responsibilities of municipal governments.
Social and community health Recycling Transportation and utilities Snow removal Policing Firefighting Emergency services
Who governs First Nations reserves?
Band chiefs and councillors

7The Justice System9 cards

What does presumption of innocence mean?
Everyone is innocent until proven guilty
What is due process?
The government must respect all the legal rights a person has under the law
Does the law apply to judges, politicians and the police?
Yes. The law applies equally to everyone
What is Canada's highest court?
The Supreme Court of Canada
Which court deals with matters concerning the federal government?
The Federal Court of Canada
Which police force enforces federal laws across Canada?
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)
Which two provinces have their own provincial police forces?
Ontario Quebec
What can you do if you are unhappy with how a police officer treated you?
Make a complaint; almost all police forces have a process for this
What is legal aid?
Free or low-cost legal help for people who cannot afford a lawyer

8Canadian Symbols24 cards

What symbol has represented the Canadian state for about 400 years?
The Crown
In what year was the current Canadian flag first raised?
1965
What are Canada's national colours, and who proclaimed them?
Red and white; King George V, in 1921
What is Canada's best-known symbol?
The maple leaf
What does the fleur-de-lis represent?
French royalty and the colony of New France
What is Canada's motto, and what does it mean?
A mari usque ad mare; "from sea to sea"
What happened to the Parliament Buildings' Centre Block in 1916?
An accidental fire destroyed it
What does the Peace Tower commemorate?
Canadians who served and died in the First World War
What is Canada's national winter sport?
Ice hockey
What is Canada's official summer sport?
Lacrosse
What is the Stanley Cup?
The championship trophy of professional hockey
Which animal appears on the five-cent coin?
The beaver
In what year did Parliament pass the Official Languages Act?
1969
What is Canada's national anthem?
"O Canada"
What is Canada's royal anthem?
"God Save the King"
What honours system did Canada create in 1967?
The Order of Canada
What is the highest honour a Canadian can receive?
The Victoria Cross
Who was the first Canadian to receive the Victoria Cross?
Lieutenant Alexander Roberts Dunn
Name one Canadian Victoria Cross recipient.
Alexander Roberts Dunn William Hall Filip Konowal Billy Bishop Paul Triquet Robert Hampton Gray
When is Canada Day?
July 1
When is Victoria Day?
The Monday before May 25
When is Remembrance Day?
November 11
When is Thanksgiving Day in Canada?
The second Monday in October
Which holiday is celebrated in Quebec on June 24?
The Fête nationale

9Canada's Economy8 cards

What are the three main types of industry in Canada?
Service industries Manufacturing industries Natural resource industries
What share of working Canadians work in service industries?
More than 75%
Name two products made by Canada's manufacturing industries.
Paper High-technology equipment Aerospace products Automobiles Machinery Food Clothing
Name two natural resource industries in Canada.
Forestry Fishing Agriculture Mining Energy
Who is Canada's largest trading partner?
The United States
In what year did Canada sign a free trade agreement with the United States?
1988
Which country joined Canada and the United States in NAFTA in 1994?
Mexico
Canada belongs to which group of leading industrial economies?
The G7 (called the G8 in Discover Canada)

10Canada's Regions31 cards

What are Canada's five regions?
The Atlantic Provinces Central Canada The Prairie Provinces The West Coast The North
How many provinces and territories does Canada have?
10 provinces and 3 territories
Which three oceans border Canada?
The Pacific Ocean The Atlantic Ocean The Arctic Ocean
What is the capital of Canada, and who chose it?
Ottawa; Queen Victoria, in 1857
Name the four Atlantic Provinces.
Newfoundland and Labrador Prince Edward Island Nova Scotia New Brunswick
Which two provinces make up Central Canada?
Quebec Ontario
Name the three Prairie Provinces.
Manitoba Saskatchewan Alberta
Name Canada's three territories.
Yukon Northwest Territories Nunavut
What is the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador?
St. John's
What is the capital of Prince Edward Island?
Charlottetown
What is the capital of Nova Scotia?
Halifax
What is the capital of New Brunswick?
Fredericton
What is the capital of Quebec?
Québec City
What is the capital of Ontario?
Toronto
What is the capital of Manitoba?
Winnipeg
What is the capital of Saskatchewan?
Regina
What is the capital of Alberta?
Edmonton
What is the capital of British Columbia?
Victoria
What is the capital of Yukon?
Whitehorse
What is the capital of the Northwest Territories?
Yellowknife
What is the capital of Nunavut?
Iqaluit
Which is Canada's smallest province?
Prince Edward Island
Where are the highest tides in the world?
The Bay of Fundy
Which province has the largest population?
Ontario
Which province is Canada's largest producer of hydro-electricity?
Quebec
Which province was called the breadbasket of the world?
Saskatchewan
Which province is Canada's largest producer of oil and gas?
Alberta
Which is Canada's westernmost province?
British Columbia
Name the five Great Lakes.
Ontario Erie Huron Michigan Superior
What is Canada's highest mountain?
Mount Logan, in Yukon
What does Nunavut mean?
"Our land" in Inuktitut

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The Justice System

Does the law apply to judges, politicians and the police?

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Published September 28, 2026